Brush Wellman Receives Favorable Jury Verdict; Company Exonerated of All Charges.

Business Editors

CLEVELAND--(BUSINESS WIRE)--June 26, 2001

The following is a statement issued by Brush Wellman Inc. following the jury's verdict in the Ballinger et. al vs. Brush Wellman Inc. trial heard in Jefferson County, Colorado District Court.

"We are, of course, very pleased with the outcome of this complex case. We applaud the jury for fully considering all of the evidence that led to our vindication.

It has been our position since the beginning that Brush adequately warned the government's Rocky Flats contractors of the need to properly protect workers from known unsafe levels of respirable beryllium.

This verdict, once and for all, exonerates Brush Wellman of the totally unsupported 'conspiracy' theory the plaintiff's attorneys attempted to put forward when they were unable to challenge our solid record of responsible hazard communication and product labeling. The trial results affirm what the General Accounting Office objectively determined last year.

While we have enormous sympathy for the individuals whose lives have been affected by this disease, it is our contention that the workers in this suit would not have been affected had Rocky Flats' contractors provided safe working conditions and appropriate hazard communications.

Additionally, we believe our evidence very clearly demonstrated our commitment to increasing the understanding of chronic beryllium disease and communicating that knowledge as quickly and broadly as possible.

Brush Wellman continues to work to end CBD and to minimize the risk to our workers and customers. The company remains steadfastly committed to this objective while ensuring that the substantial benefits from using beryllium products remain available to society."

Any forward-looking statements in this announcement are based on current expectations. The Company's performance may differ from that contemplated by the forward-looking statements as a result of a variety of factors including the global and domestic economy, manufacturing yields and operating performances at the Company's various facilities, changes in product mix, the timely and successful completion of pending capital expansions, tax rates, exchange rates and energy costs.

Brush Wellman Inc. is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Brush Engineered Materials Inc. Brush Engineered Materials Inc. is headquartered in Cleveland, Ohio. The Company, through its wholly-owned subsidiaries, supplies worldwide markets with beryllium products, alloy products, electronic products, precious metal products, and engineered material systems.